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About Hordeum vulgare

Hordeum vulgare (barley) is the world's fourth most important cereal crop and an important model for ecological adaptation, having been cultivated in all temperate regions from the Arctic Circle to the tropics. It was one of the first domesticated cereal grains originating in the Fertile Crescent over 10,000 years ago. About two-thirds of the global barley crop is used for animal feed, while the remaining third underpins the malting, brewing, and distilling industries. Although the human diet is not a primary use, barley offers potential health benefits, and is still the major calorie source in several parts of the world. Barley is a diploid member of the grass family, making it a natural model for the genetics and genomics of the Triticeae tribe, including polyploid wheat and rye. With a haploid genome size of ~5.3 Gbp in 7 chromosomes, it is one of the largest diploid genomes sequenced to date.